Overview
- The Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced on Friday that Gabriel Perez must disgorge $107,539.02 in trading profits, pay a $65,000 civil penalty and serve a three‑year ban on trading tied to the settlement.
- The CFTC found that between December 2025 and February 2026 Perez used nonpublic access to presidential speech drafts to place bets on Kalshi 'mention markets,' which pay out if a president uses specified words or phrases.
- The civil penalty was reduced under the CFTC Division of Enforcement’s cooperation advisory because Perez provided what the agency called exemplary cooperation with the investigation.
- The CFTC credited KalshiEX for assisting the probe and the agency ordered Perez to cease and desist from further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC rules; no public criminal charges were announced.
- Perez was placed on unpaid leave and is reported to no longer be working for the federal government, and the case adds to growing regulatory scrutiny of how public officials and political actors trade on event‑based markets.